St. Maarten Community Affairs at AUC Medical School

AUC strives to be a leading citizen institution in St. Maarten, collaborating with local government and community organizations and extending our educational mission into local communities to benefit the health and well-being of the people living there and enhance student learning.

People doing arts and crafts

Learn More About Service-Learning and Our Community Outreach Opportunities

Download the Community Engagement Brochure

The Department of Community Engagement

The department serves as the primary administrative link between the community and AUC's physicians-in-training. Consistent with the University’s desire to produce physicians with a lifelong commitment to community service, the department serves the following functions:

  • Builds and maintains partnerships with community organizations and foundations 
  • Provides students with supervised credit-bearing community engagement opportunities which support their professional identification and understanding of the social responsibility implicit in a physician’s role
  • Assists the wide variety of student organizations in developing service projects that address health needs of St. Maarten residents

Numerous student-run and AUC-sponsored organizations engage faculty, staff, and students in community-based projects year-round. These include periodic health and wellness screenings, volunteering at foster homes and schools, cleanup and beautification projects, tutoring and reading programs, and health education.

AUC Community Action Day Alumni

Community Action Day

AUC holds Community Action Day three times a year. Physicians-in-training and their families, along with members of AUC’s faculty, staff and administration, gather for events held throughout the island. 

The day’s events focus on health, education, animal welfare, and environmental awareness, and are conducted in partnership with St. Maarten organizations. Programs like these provide students with the opportunity to interact with their community and perform operational support, health screenings and education.

Earn Course Credit

Students can earn course credit for community engagement projects. Students enroll in an elective course to learn about community engagement, and work with communities to design a program that aligns with their priorities. 

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AUC Community Action Day - Action Shot

Develop Cultural Competency

AUC is actively involved with the St. Maarten government through the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development, and Labor to collaborate on health-related initiatives to address public health issues, such as mosquito-borne diseases. 

These activities complement the AUC medical education curriculum by helping students develop cultural competency and other important skills and attributes that are critical to their development as effective and compassionate physicians. 

Support Health and Disease Prevention

  • Health screenings and disease-prevention programs
  • Programs to engage with the elderly and support their continued cognitive function
  • Sustained efforts aimed at diseases such as breast cancer, diabetes, and HIV/AIDS
Student with child on Player Development Community Action Day

Enrich the Lives of Young People

  • Support for school meal programs
  • Youth mentoring
  • Fun activities for children and teens in foster homes
  • Scholarship program for University of St. Maarten students
  • Beautification projects and local school repairs and renovations